2 Years 4 Kids 50 Pounds ago Parents In Shape for Life

Today starts week 3 of the YWCA meltdown 2013. I have many things going on that could help me pack on weight but I am going to do all I can to stay healthy.  I recently started a new job as a personal banker and I found out that we are having our fourth child.  Little did I know when I started this blog with 2 kids that the number would double in 2 years. We broke our traditional mold of waiting 5 years between children. Not that we were ever expecting to have a fourth. Really the only one of our kids that we planned to have was our second.  We will see how the weight changes with number four. I will have to watch what I eat because I know there will be a couple of months where long periods of exercise won't be an option.

I want to thank all of you for following along with me. This blogging journey started when I was over 320 pounds and I knew I needed to do something to last as long as I could for my kids. Over the years it has changed into me talking and sharing tips on how to keep weight off, eat healthy and generally stay in shape as a parent.

I hope the next two years will be as successful as the last two.  When I look at all the changes I made to my life and diet I think sugar has been one of the most important.

I started by quitting pre-workout supplements, moved on to eliminate high fructose corn syrup from our diet and finally  to keep sugar out of my diet and out of my home. I find that I not only crave things less but that I have much more energy that is more even through the day. I don't watch my carbs or take in as much protein as I once did. But I find that I can more easy keep my weight even and drop unwanted pounds when I really put my mind to it. I think quitting sugar is going to be the main war that the world is going to have to fight against in the battle of health. 



I am still doing Gladiator every week, playing dodgeball on Fridays and swimming when I can. I have been adding in more weight exercise and adding some pounds on my bench. I think when summer hits I am going to try adding P90X to my bike workouts and I am going to train harder for the 5 mile trail run in Grand Marais so I can do it faster. What are your goals for this year as far as exercise and weight loss? I like to set specific goals so I know what I have to look forward to. Please ask if there are any questions I can help with. 

Thanks for being party of the journey, keep up the good work!

-Gabe

Trying to lose some pounds

So here is my first blog post on trying to lose weight. I have gone from Fat to Slim to Fat  again over my life. When  I was little I was thin, when I was a teenager I gained some weight and got a little fat. Then I started into sports and got thin and added a lot of muscle. But what happens when you get done with school, get a job, and have kids. This is my story about trying to lose weight on a day by day basis. I will let you know right off the bat that I am not a slacker and I have tried lots of diets in the past. I am no slacker in the gym either but I have been having a  real problem with losing weight.

     When I had my first kid I went from 215 and 4.5% body fat to adding 90 pounds in a year. I took all but about 40 of that off before I had my second but then I gained more and had some little life issues get in the way of my working out.  I am just a normal every day guy who wants to lose weight. As I write this I am in a weight loss contest called the Melt Down  at my health club, I am at 25% body fat, not bad for what I weigh but nothing like where I want to be. Last fall after watching Food Inc I gave up corn syrup in my diet, then I started cutting sugar out as much as I can. This spring we started going organic with eggs, meat, and milk and I don't know what to cut next.

     I do a fair amount of cardio and free weights but it never seems to be enough to make me lose much. I have been doing a daily food log and it helps  keep me on track but I do slip off more than I would like on weekends or on bad days at work.

    I have 2 kids, live in the burbs, have a dog and a wife that likes to eat a lot of rice and pasta and never gains weight. She lost her baby weight in 4 weeks after both of our kids and needless to say I did not.